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| #57 Eric Johnson finished second to Jason Philpot in the North State Modified Series' feature race |
Eureka, CA (May 28, 2018) – It was O’Reilly Night at the Races this past weekend at Redwood Acres Raceway. It was a special Sunday show for Memorial Day weekend which featured five of RAR’s local divisions as well as the North State Modified Series who were making their first of three visits to the track.
Kadence Mace was fast time for the Bandoleros with a 22.375. Aiden Kimberling was the trophy dash winner while Trey Daniels took the heat race. The 15-lap main event was dominated by Daniels. He jumped to the lead on lap one and never looked back. Daniels took the victory ahead of Kimberling and Mace.
The Compass Community Credit Union roadrunners were paced by Nick Ford in qualifying as his time was 20.449. Tim Ratzlaff got the lead right from the drop of the green flag of the first main event. Ratzlaff dominated, so much so that he broke the 21-second barrier on lap 12. This moved Patrick Sproul to the point and it looked as though the race fell into his hands. Ratzlaff had other plans as he charged hard to regain the lead. With two laps remaining, Ratzlaff retook the lead and was able to pull away. At the finish it was Ratzlaff, Sproul, Ford, Landon Newell and Ronny Crump.
Ratzlaff took the lead at the start of the second feature event. Sproul took over on lap two and had a race-long battle with Nick Ford for the win. As the finish came closer, Sproul led with three laps remaining. The next lap, Ratzlaff who had stayed closely behind the two leaders made a move for the lead. The maneuver paid off as he was able to take the lead. Ratzlaff crossed the line first sweeping both feature events. Ford, Sproul, Newell and Crump rounded out the top five.
Derek Copeland was quick time in the NorthCoast Lighting and Electric Legends division with a 17.873. Copeland followed up with wins in the trophy dash. Heat race wins went to Kylie Daniels and Copeland. The lap one leader was Tyler Peach and he held on to the lead for five laps before Copeland took over. The most serious challenger to Copeland’s lead was Chris Lawrence. Just as Lawrence made an inside move for the lead, the yellow flag dropped. Copeland led the field to the restart and was able to go on unchallenged. At the finish it was Copeland winning over Lawrence, Peach, Katina Baker and Daniels.
In the Fortuna Wheel & Brake bombers, Wyatt Roach was fast time with an 18.331. Roach was the winner of the trophy dash and Jim Redd won the heat race. Redd moved to the lead on lap one. Roach proved to be Redd’s closest competition but fell out early. Redd was able to pull away from the field and lead the race flag-to-flag to win. Chris Naughton placed second, Doug Way third, Kolby Jackson fourth while Roach was scored fifth.
Brett Murrell set the fastest time in qualifying for the Humboldt Hydroponics mini stocks with a 18.769. Eugene Palmer was the dash winner while the heats went to Trevor Eacret and Murrell. Jordan Paiment led the first five laps of the feature event before Murrell took over the lead. Palmer moved to second the same lap and tried his best to stick to Murrell’s bumper. Murrell was able to gap Palmer enough that it appeared as though he was going to cruise to the victory. With one lap remaining, Murrell’s car failed moving Palmer to the lead. The last lap proved to be the only lap Palmer needed to lead as he won his first main event of 2018. Scott Taylor took second over Eacret, Gary Klientobe and Brian Murrell, Sr.
Randy Houston’s 16.514 in qualifying was the standard set in qualifying for the North State Modifieds. Ian Elliott took the victory in the six-lap Lucas Oil Dash For Cash. Eric Johnson led from the drop of the green flag of the 60-lap event. Jason Philpot followed into second and the first two ran-nose-to tail for several laps. Just past the halfway point, Philpot was able to maneuver past Johnson for the lead. The best battle on the track proved to be for second as Johnson did all he could to hold off Kris Price and Houston. Even after a couple of caution flags, Philpot was able to pull away while Johnson had his hands full with Houston and Price filling his mirror. Philpot was able to cruise to the checkered flag by over two seconds. Johnson held on for second over Price, Houston and Dustin DeRosier.
Racing at Redwood Acres Raceway returns Saturday June 9th. The Super Six Challenge Series late models will be returning to action along with the five other local divisions. Visit www.RedwoodAcresRacing.com for more information on the upcoming event as well as race and points result. You can also find RAR on Facebook by visiting www.facebook.com/RedwoodAcresRaceway